On a cool evening in Texas, my daughter and I witnessed little tiny lights exploding around us. When I glanced up, it looked like our personal mini-fireworks show. With eyes wide-open, my 8-year-old little girl questioned: “What are those lighty-things, Momma?” I responded that they were fireflies. Then a quick succession of questions and statements followed: “How do they light up? What happens when the light goes out? Those are so cool.”

Her awestruck reactions to ordinary occurrences isn’t atypical. She looks at everything as a wonderful surprise: the acorns that form a pattern on the ground, the shapes and special language of the clouds in the sky, and the discovery of a new word, like “fabricated,” all are moments of astonishment for her. The world is a mysterious web of discoveries that heighten her ability to embrace the unknown. Because there is the possibility that every experience may lead her to yet another new place, she adds another golden coin of wonder in her metaphorical pocket.

Sometimes her glee spills over like errant drops of water after a big splash. When I’m paying attention, I catch a few of these drops.

Read the rest of this essay on  First Day Press.

Image: “Ribbon Falls” via Dhilung Kirat via Flickr.